Bellusso Jewelers Blog

The wearable technology category continues to grow by leaps and bounds. In fact, according to a recent Wearable Technology report conducted by IDTechEx Research, the segment accounts for about $30 billion, with $11 billion of that coming from smart watches and fitness trackers.

While many watch pundits feared the coming of smart watches — thinking they would steal growth from the traditional watch category — they have actually fueled interest in what people are wearing on the wrists. Additionally, some of today's top watch brands are delving into the category and offering a deft blend of traditional watchmaking and smart technology.

Among them are TAG Heuer, Frederique Constant, Breitling, Tissot and others. Certain brands are even doing things a bit differently and, in the case with Bulgari, offering technology that enables access to secure information via one's timepiece.

Over the past week or so we have talked a lot about active watches for summer — covering pilots and aviation watches, dive watches and water resistance. Another very important thing to consider during the summer months is how to care for your mechanical or quartz watch.

Clean It: Because watches generally take a bit more of a beating in summer when we indulge in a more active lifestyle, it is important to regularly clean it. If you take a watch worn regularly off your wrist and turn it over, there is most likely some ugly dirt buildup on the case, caseback and lugs. This is not good for a watch because if the seals or gaskets are loose, dirt can get inside and damage the movement. Additionally, it wears down the strap faster.

We suggest a gentle cleaning with a soft cloth (such as a non-abrasive towel or cotton tee-shirt). You may need to put a little elbow grease into it, but do not use water. You can also use the same soft cloth on the watch crystal.

On the inside of the strap, you can use a damp towel with a little soap to clean the strap and then dry it carefully. Even if you have a water-resistant watch, it's best to clean it after swimming, as chlorine and salt can be abrasive. Also, always be sure the crown (stem) is pushed in tightly, and if you have a screw-down crown, once it is pushed in, you need to screw it into the locked position.

Avoid Rigorous Activity: While many watches today are shock resistant, they should not be subjected to rigorous activity unless proven to be able to withstand intense treatment (such as a COSC-certified chronometer). Be careful to avoid holding your watch over a hardwood floor or cement pool patio while putting it on. Sometimes we are in a rush and the watch drops, which can cause damage. We have seen this sort of thing all too often.

Replace Cracked Crystals: If your watch crystal is scratched or has a hairline fracture, get it replaced fast — before dust or moisture seeps inside. This can do even greater harm.

Keep Batteries Running: For quartz watches, if your battery dies, get it fixed. Do not leave a dead battery inside a watch or it can eventually corrode, leak and ruin the timepiece. Always take your watch to an authorized retailer or a retailer with a properly equipped service department to have the battery replaced.

Have it Serviced: This is especially important for mechanical watches, which — much like a fine car — need an oil change and maintenance every so often. Even quartz watches — if worn in the water — should be checked annually just to ensure it remains water resistant and the gaskets are still intact.

Check Water Resistance: Don’t assume your watch is ready to join you for a dive into the ocean or pool just because it says water-resistant. We wrote about water resistance here a few weeks ago, and we suggest you scroll back and see what your watch can or can't do, depending on its depth of water resistance.

Other than that, stop in our store anytime to check out our newest watches, or to talk about watch care.

Wristwatches and aviation share a similar history. Both were born in the early 1900s out of necessity and passion. In fact, it was in the 1920s that the majority of people began moving from pocket watches to wristwatches and, by the 1930s, wristwatches had become a necessity. At war, it was easier for soldiers to synchronize time on the wrist without having to remove a watch from a pocket. Similarly, the Wright Brothers were experimenting with flight in the early 1900s, and in 1903 were the first ever to sustain fight. By World War I, planes had developed 100-fold and were an strategic necessity.

Today, these two fields remain intertwined, as more and more watch brands create pilot watches for professionals and hobbyists. IWC is one of the brands that leads the pack. This company has been creating pilot watches for nearly a century and is credited with inventing the first anti-magnetic pilot watch in the 1930s — by adding a soft-iron inner case to the watch.

Since then, it has led the way in offering incredible pilot watches that run the gamut from the Mark to the Spitfire and the Top Gun series. This year, the brand has rejuvenated its entire Big Pilot collection, unveiling a host of models with interesting changes.

Among them, a single date window on certain models to clean up the dial and offer stronger legibility, a slightly larger (43mm) case and, on the Pilot's Watch Chronograph, the addition of a stunning blue dial. There are also new models in the Pilot's Watch Chronograph Petit Prince line and the Spitfire lines. In fact, this year the brand equips the Spitfire with the Caliber 79320 automatic movement, giving the watch 44 hours of power reserve.

Today, the IWC Pilot watch collection has rounded out to become a true statement in function and form. We invite you to fly by the store anytime to see our collection.

Vintage watches and clocks always amaze us when they go up for auction. They seem to always hold their value — especially when they have a celebrity provenance. Recently, at Christie's New York auction of comedian Joan Rivers' property, several clocks and watches were sold for more than double the estimated price.

Lot 28, an Austrian silver, gilt and malachite table clock with gemstones, was expected to fetch $2,000. The early 20th century ornate clock measuring 8-1/2 inches tall sold for $3,750.

Selling for $6,875 was Lot 31, another malachite table clock. This one was a late 19th century German Ormolu malachite-veneered table clock with a gilded astronomer sitting atop. The dial is signed John Hartmann, Horloger Du Roi, Berlin. The clock measures 20 inches in height. Experts had estimated that the clock may fetch $3,000.

As to watches, a lady's Chanel Premier watch with quartz movement and a two-row gold-plated link bracelet, circa 1987, was estimated to sell in the range of $1,500 to $2,000. It realized $3,750. Additionally, Lot 95, a lady's quartz Chopard watch with black resin case and dial was supposed to sell for $1,000 and actually sold for $2,125.

Rivers, whose acerbic comedic style earned her legions of fans and a co-hosting gig on E!’s Fashion Police, passed away on Sept. 4, 2014, at the age of 81. During her successful 55-year-career as a comedian, actress, writer and producer, Rivers amassed an impressive collection of jewelry and watches from esteemed designers, such as Fabergé, Harry Winston, Chanel and Tiffany.

Earlier this week, we wrote an article about water resistance. At the close of that story, we noted that if you have a 300-meter water-resistant watch, you can do deep diving with it on your wrist. Here, we bring you a look at what constitutes a true dive watch.

A host of top watch brands offer high-precision professional dive watches that are equipped with all sorts of important features that help to make these watches impervious to the rigors of the deep. Often watch brands seek outside help from experts in the dive world as they build their professional timepieces.

To be a true dive watch, the timepiece should meet certain standards depending on whether one is snorkeling, scuba diving or deep sea diving. For diving, the true minimum should be 300 meters of water resistance. Some people may choose a 200-meter water-resistant watch — but only if staying within 100 meters of the surface.

Other than water resistance, a true dive watch should include the following:

Most dive watches are also COSC-certified chronometers. Chronometers are watches that have undergone rigorous testing by the Controle Official Suisse des Chronometres (COSC) observatory over a period of time. The watches are monitored in various positions and under different conditions of pressure, temperature, depth and gravity.

If you plan to dive, stop in our store and check out our selection of superb diver watches from a host of brands.

It’s summer and that means many of us are engaging in water sports. But, before you jump right in, take a look at these important factors that will help you determine if the watch on your wrist can jump in with you.

To begin with, no watch is waterproof. Watches can be rated "water resistant" to a certain depth that is typically pre-determined in a series of tests. If a watch does not carry the words "water resistant," it most likely is not water resistant. Look for the designation on the dial or caseback.

Several important watch parts influence whether or not a watch is water resistant. These include proper gaskets, screw-down crowns (where once the time has been set and the crown is pushed back in, the crown is screwed into locking position), and screwed casebacks (where, in the manufacture of the watch, the caseback has been threaded to fit the case with no openings).

So, what's the long and the short of it? Here is a quick guide to help you decide just how much water your watch will enjoy.

• 30 meters: It should not be worn in the water; it is most likely just splash resistant.
• 50 meters: Swim with it.
• 100 meters: Snorkel with it.
• 200 meters: Snorkel and maybe dive to 100-meters – no deep dives.
• 300 meters: Congratulations you can deep dive.

Just one other note, though. Showering or hot-tubbing with a water resistant watch is not a good idea, as the warmer temperatures of the water can affect the gasket shape and seal. We also recommend that you have your watch tested for water resistance once a year, typically before the summer season hits.

Renowned for its incredible work with Tourbillons (escapements that compensate for errors in timekeeping due to the effects of gravity when the watch is in certain positions on the wrist), Greubel Forsey now unveils one of its most beloved movements inside a totally transparent case. Meet the Greubel Forsey transparent Double Tourbillon 30-Degrees Technique Sapphire watch. Created in an incredibly limited edition of just 8 pieces, the watch is a United States exclusive, retailing for more than $1 million each.

The case is machined from a solid block of sapphire — a feat that requires diamond-tipped tools and hundreds of hours of time. The sapphire case allows for a crystal clear view of the complicated 396-part patented double-tourbillon movement. This patented caliber features one tourbillon cage inside the other, each rotating at different speeds (the outer one completes a single rotation once every four minutes; the inner one rotates once every minute). The result is a near perfect chronometry rating. In fact, Greubel Forsey achieved an unheard-of score for this movement of 915 out of 1,000 points at the International Chronometry Competition in 2011.

Blancpain’s newest Fifty Fathoms Ocean Commitment Bathyscaphe watch is the perfect piece for summer water fun. The watch is water resistant to 300 meters, and features a flyback chronograph with a uni-directional satin-brushed grey ceramic bezel, blue ceramic inserts and Liquidmetal® hour markers. Created in a limited edition of 250 pieces, the stunning blue timepiece houses the Manufacture-made self-winding Caliber F385 that offers 50 hours of power reserve. It is also equipped with a silicon balance spring and free-sprung balance wheel. A portion of the proceeds of the sale of this watch is donated by Blancpain to preserve the world's oceans via Ocean Commitments.

About the Store

Welcome to Bellusso Jewelers, pure luxury for the discriminating shopper. This romantic terrace-styled row of boutiques is located on the casino level of the Palazzo Hotel, Resort & Casino between the Venetian’s restaurant row and the Palazzo’s grand casino. Sophisticated, elegant and strikingly opulent, Bellusso Jewelers boasts the most stunning array of jewelry and timepieces from some of the most celebrated brand names in the world.